Satellite positioning system enabled media measurement system and method

ABSTRACT

The present invention is directed to utilizing monitoring devices ( 200 ) for determining the effectiveness of various locations, such as media display locations ( 150 ) for an intended purpose (media display exposure). The monitoring devices ( 200 ) are distributed to a number of study respondents. The monitoring devices ( 200 ) track the movements of the respondents. While various technologies may be used to track the movements of the respondents, at least some of the location tracking of the monitoring device ( 200 ) utilize a satellite ( 105 ) location system such as the global positioning system (“GPS”). These movements of the respondent and monitoring device ( 200 ) at some point coincide with exposure to a number of media displays ( 150 ). Geo data (movement data) collected by the monitoring devices, is downloaded to a download server ( 300 ), for determining which media displays ( 150 ) the respondent was exposed to. The exposure determinations are made by a post-processing server ( 400 ).

CROSS-REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0001] This application is a divisional of prior U.S. application Ser.No. 10/318,422, filed Dec. 11, 2002, priority from the filing date ofwhich is hereby claimed under 35 U.S.C. § 120. Pursuant to 35 U.S.C. §119, this application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional ApplicationNo. 60/345,908, filed on Dec. 31, 2001, titled TRACKING CONSUMEREXPOSURE TO OUTDOOR ADVERTISING UTILIZING GPS and U.S. ProvisionalApplication No. 60/427,904, filed Nov. 20, 2002, titled GLOBALPOSITIONING SYSTEM ENABLED MEDIA MEASUREMENT SYSTEM AND METHOD, both ofwhich are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0002] The present invention generally relates to assessing theeffectiveness of media displays. More specifically, the presentinvention is directed toward tracking individuals and their exposures tomedia displays using a satellite positioning system enabled device andother methods.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0003] The media industries (print, television, radio, on-line, outdoorand indoor) are always interested in determining their audiences so asto better assess the value of the products they provide to advertisersand others. Given recent developments in the media industries, there hasbeen a renewed interest in outdoor and indoor media displays.Unfortunately, until now there has been a lack of consensus andacceptance of a system and/or method of assessing the value of outdoorand indoor media displays (e.g., billboards, posters, kiosks, videokiosks, on-line kiosks, and other publicly viewable media displays).More specifically, in recent years, the publicly viewable media displayindustries have made significant progress in delivering their publiclyviewable media displays. Unfortunately, the research industry that couldprovide exposure, frequency, and reach estimates has not kept pace withthese developments. Accordingly, publicly viewable media displayproviders have not been able to take advantage of media-buying changesand thereby increase market share against other measured media (e.g.,television, radio, and on-line). In fact, many potential clients do noteven consider publicly displayed media as there is no reliablemeasurement system to gauge exposure to the public.

[0004] Accordingly, it would be an advantage to provide accuratemeasurements of exposure to public media displays in order to obtainexposure, reach and frequency statistics that can justify the value ofsuch media displays. However, there are unique problems with mediadisplays. Radio, TV, and on-line media have the ability to assure aone-to-one or at least a one-to-a limited number tracking of viewers.The very nature of publicly viewable media displays allows a variety ofindividuals to be viewing the same display at the same time.Furthermore, there may be many more “channels” of publicly viewablemedia displays available in a given geographic area than would beavailable over radio or television.

[0005] This increase in both viewers and publicly viewable mediachannels provides scalability issues. If every individual and everymedia display must be tracked, the cost of calculating accurate reachand frequency statistics may become prohibitive. Previous media displaysolutions have tried to provide such an unscalable many-to-manysolution. One such previous system has tried to provide radios invehicles that respond to radios on media displays. However to beeffective, such a system requires radios on every media display in agiven environment to give an accurate assessment. Leaving a radio off aparticular media display would mean that media display has no chance ofbeing assessed. Additionally, a substantial subset of individuals mustcarry radios responsive to the media display radios in order for thisapproach to be even marginally effective.

[0006] Another ineffective solution has been the use of consumersurveys. Consumer surveys are ineffective because such surveys changerespondent behavior and are inherently inaccurate as respondents rarelyremember all the media displays they were exposed to. As many mediaproviders are well aware, some media displays can convey a message, andchange a respondent's behavior, without the respondent activelyrecalling that they were exposed to the media display.

[0007] Other previous systems have involved tracking vehicles throughvarious means. While vehicle tracking is marginally effective, it hasthe drawback of being less granular with regard to demographics. Over anextended period of time many vehicles will have different occupantshaving different demographics. It is difficult, if not impossible, toaccurately reconstruct the demographics of every passenger and/or driverof a vehicle. Additionally, under ordinary circumstances, vehicles arenot allowed in pedestrian-only areas, such as shopping malls and/orpedestrian thoroughfares.

[0008] Similar needs are found in other industries that are alsointerested in determining their audiences so as to better plan forplacement of services and other assets. Until now there has been asimilar lack of consensus and acceptance of a system and/or method ofassessing the value of placement of services and other assets.

[0009] Accordingly, there is a need for an accurate system and/or methodfor tracking the exposure of demographically identified individuals tomedia displays. Such tracking should be operable over extended periodsand should track individuals both indoors and outdoors. It is desirablethat such a system and or method also be usable in other industries.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0010] The present invention is directed to utilizing monitoring devicesfor determining the effectiveness of various locations for an intendedpurpose. In one embodiment, the monitoring devices are used fordetermining the effectiveness of media displays. In this exemplaryembodiment, the monitoring devices are distributed to a number of studyrespondents for carrying on the person of the respondents, whosedemographics are known. The monitoring devices track the movements ofthe respondents. While various technologies may be used to track themovements of the monitoring devices and, thus, the respondents,preferably the monitoring device location tracking utilizes a satelliteposition system (“SPS”) such as the global positioning system (“GPS”) ordifferential global positioning system (“DGPS”). More specifically,those of ordinary skill in the art and others will appreciate from thefollowing description that the present invention may utilize a varietyof satellite and radio frequency location tracking systems (e.g., GPS,Galileo, DGPS, GLOSNASS, WAAS, OMEGA, LORAN, VOR, etc.). Collectively,such systems will be referred to as positioning systems, for ease ofdescription. Regardless of the nature of the location tracking system,the movements of the respondent and monitoring device at some pointcoincide with the location of a number of media displays. Collecting geodata (movement data) from the monitoring devices and knowing thelocation of media displays makes it possible to determine which mediadisplays respondents were exposed to. This information allows theeffectiveness of the media displays to be rated based on reach andfrequency. Reach is a measure of how many respondents were exposed to amedia display, and frequency is a measure of the number of exposures (onaverage) per respondent.

[0011] If desired, the monitoring devices may be initialized with studyspecific data (e.g., geographic regions of a study, length of time of astudy, device behavior profiles, specific indoor zones to be tracked,etc.). In addition to utilizing SPS tracking, which requires access toSPS signals in order to determine a location, some exemplary monitoringdevices may also utilize radio frequency identification (“RFID”) signalsas an additional aid in determining a respondent's location. Otherpossible location determining components may be used in these monitoringdevices. Accelerometers, gyroscopes, inclinometers, barometers andcompasses may in some embodiments augment the location and movementtracking capabilities of the monitoring devices.

[0012] In accordance with further aspects of the present invention, thedata gathered from the respondents may further be categorized bydemographics to allow for more detailed understanding of theeffectiveness of media displays.

[0013] In accordance with still other aspects of the present invention,the monitoring devices may be distributed to respondents in any one of avariety of different manners, such as by mailing the monitoring devicesto the respondents or in some way using a common carrier and/or courierto have them delivered to the respondents.

[0014] In accordance with additional aspects of the present invention,preferably, the effectiveness of media displays is determined using apost-processing server after geo data has been obtained from a pluralityof data sources, i.e., monitoring devices. The geo data representslocations along the path of travel of at least one respondent. Thelocations are matched to the locations of media displays. Theeffectiveness of such media displays is determined based on the numberof matches between geo data locations and media display locations. Ifdesired, prior to such a determination, the geo data is analyzed and anyerroneous data (e.g., out-of-tabulation data) is removed. Theeffectiveness of the media displays is then rated by determining thereach and frequency of the media displays.

[0015] In accordance with still additional aspects of the presentinvention, preferably, geo data is enhanced with other data to enhanceaccuracy. Both complete and incomplete geo data can be enhanced withother data. One source of other data is a geographic information system(“GIS”) database. Geo data accuracy can be enhanced by GIS data bylocating a respondent on an adjacent street when the geo data places therespondent near, but not on, the street, for example. Additionally, thegeo data may be “groomed” by conventional location data grooming methodsto further enhance accuracy.

[0016] In accordance with other aspects of the present invention,preferably, the post-processing server determines media displayeffectiveness by obtaining geo data specifying the locations traversedby a monitoring device and matching the monitoring device locations witha number of media display locations (e.g., by determining whether themonitoring device traversed within a threshold distance of a mediadisplay location). Matches between monitoring device locations and themedia display locations establish that the respondent carrying themonitoring device was exposed to the media displays. The geo data may beobtained directly from the monitoring devices or in the alternative maybe obtained from intermediary devices such as download servers thatobtain the geo data from the monitoring devices. In addition toretrieving geo data describing the locations and movements of arespondent, in an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, devicedata is also gathered. The device data may be gathered directly from themonitoring devices themselves or, as noted above, through intermediarydevices such as download servers. Device data may comprise monitoringdevices diagnostic data, monitoring device status information, etc.

[0017] In accordance with yet other aspects of the present invention,preferably, the geo data is periodically stored (“geo data points”). Forcomparison purposes, lines between these geo data points are calculated.In one embodiment of the present invention, straight lines arecalculated. Alternatively, curved lines based on the progression of geodata points are calculated. Additionally, the geo data points may beused to calculate movement speed, i.e., velocity.

[0018] Still further, in accordance with another aspect of the presentinvention, the geo data may be groomed to increase its accuracy.Potential grooming methods include adding DGPS data to the geo data,merging partial geo data locations with known data, and/or ascribingadditional geo data locations from known data.

[0019] In accordance with further aspects of the present invention,preferably, geo data is analyzed to locate anomalous data (e.g., data inincorrect form and/or data describing a highly unlikely location, etc.).Anomalous geo data may be stored for subsequent processing. Subsequentprocessing of anomalous and non-anomalous geo data is used to determineconfidence ratings for monitoring device locations, i.e., geo datapoints.

[0020] In addition to determining exposures, reach, and frequency ofmedia displays in yet further embodiments of the present invention, thereach and frequency ratings are categorized in accordance with thedemographics of respondents. Also, processing the geo data may beprocessed to determine gross rating points (“GRPs”) and daily effectivecirculation ratings for each media display.

[0021] In still further embodiments of the present invention, a surveyof respondent's recall of media displays is obtained and processed.Processing is such that a respondent's recall is collated torespondent's geo data. In addition to recall, if desired, a survey of arespondent's purchasing behavior may be obtained and processed. Again,processing is such that a respondent's purchases are collated in somemanner with the respondent's geo data. Processed recall and purchasingsurveys are useful in rating the effectiveness of media displays.

[0022] In accordance with alternative aspects of the present invention,information other than media display effectiveness for existing mediadisplays is determined. For example, the potential effectiveness of alocation that could have a media display is determined. In accordancewith the invention, such a determination can be made by post processinggeo data specifying a plurality of locations traversed by a monitoringdevice in a geographic region in accordance with a target level of mediadisplay exposure and a budget. All potential locations that fall withinthe budget are then matched to the geo data locations to determine foreach of the potential locations whether the monitoring device would havebeen exposed to a potential media display at each of the potentiallocations. The result determines which locations would have had the mostexposure. In additional embodiments, reach, frequency, GRPs, and dailyeffective circulation may be factored in when determining the optimalplacement for a media display.

[0023] In accordance with other alternative aspects of the presentinvention, the geo data is used for location usage planning withoutregard to media displays. First, geo data specifying locations that havebeen traversed by monitoring devices within a geographic region aredetermined. Next, desired traffic (e.g., movement) characteristics for adesired location are selected. The geo data locations are then examinedto determine their traffic characteristics. The established trafficcharacteristics of the geo data locations and the desired trafficcharacteristics are compared to determine whether any of the geo datalocations conform to the desired traffic characteristics. The geo datamay in some embodiments include the locations along lines between geodata points. Such an embodiment allows for the planning of retaillocations, services, and the like.

[0024] In accordance with still other aspects of the present invention,preferably, the monitoring devices operate periodically to obtain SPSdata by determining which satellites are available, identifying at leastsome of the available satellites and storing data of at least some ofthe satellites along with a date and time. When SPS data is unavailable,preferably monitoring devices formed in accordance with this inventionreduce power usage.

[0025] In accordance with yet still other aspects of this invention, inaddition to including SPS location determination components, alternativemonitoring devices formed in accordance with this invention includeother types of location determining components such as RF locatingcomponents (e.g., transponders, receivers, transmitters, RFID devices,etc.).

[0026] Alternate embodiments of monitoring devices formed in accordancewith this invention decrease power usage when a motion sensing componentindicates that a threshold time has passed with no movement of themonitoring device. Preferably, such monitoring devices stop trying toacquire SPS and/or other location information as there is no need tocontinually acquire this information by immobile monitoring devices. Onesuitable motion sensing component is a trembler device.

[0027] Still other alternate embodiments of monitoring devices formed inaccordance with this invention determine a projected life of themonitoring device's power source and change the period of acquisition ofSPS and/or other location data based on a projected life of the powersource. Such embodiments allow a device whose battery power is almostexhausted to continue acquiring useful information over a period of time(such as a study period) during which data is desired.

[0028] Yet still other embodiments of monitoring devices formed inaccordance with the present invention include additional locationdetermining components such as a radio frequency (“RF”) locationdetermining component. Suitable RF location determining components areRF transponders, transmitters, and/or receivers that can be used toeither gather additional location information, or in the case of atransmitter to provide identification information to a receiver at aknown location. Of course, additional non-RF location determiningcomponents also may be included in such embodiments.

[0029] As will be readily appreciated from the foregoing summary, theinvention provides a new and improved method, systems, and computerreadable medium for providing enriched location based information andusing the information to determine the effectiveness of media displays,potential media display locations, etc.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0030] The foregoing aspects and many of the attendant advantages ofthis invention will become more readily appreciated as the same becomebetter understood by reference to the following detailed description,when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

[0031]FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a system for monitoring publiclyviewable media displays formed in accordance with the present invention.

[0032]FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a monitoring device for tracking arespondent's movements formed in accordance with the present invention.

[0033]FIG. 3 is a block diagram of a download server for receiving datafrom a monitoring device formed in accordance with the presentinvention.

[0034]FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a post processing server forprocessing information received from download servers formed inaccordance with the present invention.

[0035]FIG. 5 is an overview flow diagram illustrating a monitoringroutine resident in a monitoring device formed in accordance with thepresent invention.

[0036]FIG. 6 is an overview flow diagram illustrating a device analysissubroutine suitable for use in FIG. 5.

[0037]FIG. 7 is an overview flow diagram illustrating a movementanalysis subroutine suitable for use in FIG. 6.

[0038]FIG. 8 is an overview flow diagram illustrating a power savingsubroutine suitable for use in FIG. 6.

[0039]FIG. 9 is an overview flow diagram illustrating abattery-processing subroutine suitable for use in FIG. 8.

[0040]FIG. 10 is an overview flow diagram illustrating a locationdetermination subroutine suitable for use in FIG. 5.

[0041]FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating interactions between amonitoring device, a download server, and a post processing server fordetermining media display effectiveness statistics in accordance withthe present invention.

[0042]FIG. 12 is an overview flow diagram illustrating an initializationroutine resident in a download server formed in accordance with thepresent invention.

[0043]FIG. 13 is an overview flow diagram illustrating a monitoringdevice download routine resident on a download server formed inaccordance with the present invention.

[0044]FIG. 14 is an overview flow diagram illustrating a post processingroutine resident on the post processing server for further processinginformation from monitoring devices and the download servers formed inaccordance with the present invention.

[0045]FIG. 15 is an overview flow diagram illustrating an accuracyenhancing geo data grooming subroutine suitable for use in FIG. 14.

[0046]FIG. 16 is an overview flow diagram illustrating a locationmatching subroutine suitable for use in FIG. 14.

[0047]FIG. 17 is an overview flow diagram illustrating a tabulationstatistics subroutine suitable for use in FIG. 14.

[0048]FIG. 18 is an overview flow diagram illustrating a media displayrating subroutine suitable for use in FIG. 14.

[0049]FIG. 19 is an overview flow diagram illustrating a recall andpurchasing rating subroutine suitable for use in FIG. 14.

[0050]FIG. 20 is an overflow diagram of a media planning ratingsubroutine suitable for use in FIG. 14.

[0051]FIG. 21 is an overflow diagram of a non-media planning ratingsubroutine suitable for use in FIG. 14.

[0052]FIG. 22 is an overview flow diagram illustrating a reach andfrequency analysis subroutine suitable for use in FIG. 20.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

[0053] The detailed description which follows is in terms of processesand symbolic representations of operations by conventional computingcomponents, including processors, memory storage devices for theprocessor, connected input and output devices. These described processesand operations may utilize conventional computing components as well asmore specialized components in a heterogeneous distributed computingenvironment, including remote file servers, computer servers, and memorystorage devices. Each of these conventional distributed computingcomponents may be accessible by a processor via a communication network.

[0054]FIG. 1 is a functional block diagram of a system 100 fordetermining the reach and frequency of a respondent's exposure topublicly viewable media displays. While the system 100 generallyoperates in a computing environment comprising individual computersystems, some of which may be interconnected over a network (such as theInternet, publicly switched telephone network, or others), it will beappreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art and others that thesystem 100 could equally function with a single standalone computersystem. The system 100 shown in FIG. 1 includes a monitoring device 200,satellite positioning system (“SPS”) satellites 105, a media display150, a download server 300, a post processing server 400, and ageographic information system (“GIS”) database 125. It will beappreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art and others that aconventional GIS database 125 may reside in the post processing server400 or may reside on a separate device. The monitoring device 200,download server 300, and post processing server 400 are furtherdescribed below in relation to FIGS. 2, 3 and 4, respectively.Additionally, while for ease of illustration only one monitoring device200, one download server 300, one post processing server 400, and onemedia display 150 have been shown, it will be appreciated that many suchdevices and/or displays may be included in the system 100 or that thedownload server 300 and the post-processing server 400 may reside on thesame device. FIGS. 2, 3, and 4 illustrate exemplary devices suitable fordetermining the exposure to and reach and frequency of media displays.The devices are only examples and are not intended to suggest anylimitation as to the scope of use or functionality of the invention.Neither should the devices be interpreted as having any dependencyrequirement relating to any one or a combination of componentsillustrated in the examples.

[0055] To better illustrate the interaction of, and purposes for, thedevices of FIG. 1, the following exemplary embodiment is presented. Inthis exemplary embodiment, using the devices of system 100, theeffectiveness of the multiple media displays 150 is rated using multiplemonitoring devices 200, the download server 300, and the post processingserver 400. The monitoring devices 200 are distributed to a number ofstudy respondents. Each respondent carries the monitoring devices,which, in turn, track the movements of the associated respondent. Themovement of the respondents carrying the monitoring devices at somepoint result in the respondents being exposed to media displays 150,i.e., the respondents reach positions in their movements where they canvisually or audibly receive the information provided by the mediadisplays. As the respondents move, the monitoring devices store thetracking data determined by the monitoring devices (“geo data”). The geodata collected by the monitoring devices is used to determine whichmedia displays the respondent was exposed to by comparing the geo datawith location data defining the location of the media display. Morespecifically, the monitoring devices 200, in the embodiment of theinvention illustrated in FIG. 1, download their geo data to one or moredownload servers 300. The download servers 300 forward the downloadedgeo data to the post-processing server 400. The post processing server400 processes the geo data using data from the GIS database as necessaryand compares the processed geo data with data defining the location ofthe media displays 150 to determine the exposure of the respondentscarrying the monitoring devices to the media displays. The effectivenessof the media displays is then rated by the post-processing server 400determining the reach and frequency of the media displays. Reach is ameasure of how many respondents were exposed to the media displays, andfrequency is a measure of the number of exposures (on average) perrespondent.

[0056] The invention is operable in numerous general purpose or specialcomputing device environments or configurations other than the exemplaryone shown in FIG. 1. Examples of well known computing devices,environments, and/or configurations that may be suitable forimplementing the invention include, but are not limited to, personalcomputers, server computers, laptop devices, multiprocessor systems,microprocessor-based systems, network PCs, minicomputers, mainframecomputers, and handheld computers operable as stand alone devices and indistributed computing environments.

[0057]FIG. 2 depicts several key components of an exemplary monitoringdevice 200. Those of ordinary skill in the art and others willappreciate that the illustrated monitoring device 200 may include moreor less components than those shown in FIG. 2. However, it is notnecessary that all of these generally conventional components be shownin order to disclose a monitoring device suitable for practicing thepresent invention. It will also be appreciated by those of ordinaryskill in the art and others that a monitoring device 200 suitable forpracticing the invention may have many form factors, e.g., as a smalldevice carried by an individual, a vehicle mounted device, an addedcomponent of another device, etc. As shown in FIG. 2, the monitoringdevice 200 includes an input/output (“I/O”) interface 230 for connectingto other devices (such as the download server 300). Those of ordinaryskill in the art and others will appreciate that the I/O interface 230includes the necessary circuitry for such a connection, and is alsoconstructed for use with the protocols required by a particularimplementation of the invention.

[0058] The illustrated monitoring device 200 also includes a processingunit 210, a clock 225, an RF location component 240, a SPS interface245, a trembler 215, a directional unit 235, and a memory 250 allinterconnected along with the I/O interface 230 via a bus 220. The clock225 provides time information to the monitoring device 200. The RFlocation component 240 is an optional component that is responsive toradio signals. The RF location component may include a receiver forreceiving location information from another RF device or a transmitterthat broadcasts the location of the monitoring device. Alternatively,the transmitter could transmit a monitoring device identification codefor receipt by RF receivers located proximate to the media display 150.Still further, exemplary RF location components 240 include active orpassive radio frequency identification (“RFID”) components and RFtransponders as well as receivers and transmitters.

[0059] The SPS interface 245 is a component that is operative to receiveand record SPS signals. More specifically, the SPS interface includes aSPS engine well known in the art that receives signals from SPSsatellites, pseudolites or related devices and uses the signals todetermine the location of the SPS engine and, thus, the deviceincorporating the SPS engine. SPS is a generic reference to anysatellite/pseudolite based location determining system.

[0060] The trembler 215 is an optional motion sensing component thatdetects whether the device with which the trembler is associated, inthis case a monitoring device, has been handled, jostled, or in someother manner moved. Tremblers 215 are useful for determining when adevice has not moved for extended periods of time so that power savingmeasures can be enabled.

[0061] The directional unit 235 is an optional non-RF directionalcomponent that does not require outside broadcasts or signals todetermine either position or movement in a direction. Some exemplarydirectional units include compasses, accelerometers, gyroscopes,barometers, altimeters, inclinometers, and the like.

[0062] The memory 250 generally comprises at least one of a randomaccess memory (“RAM”), a read-only memory (“ROM”) and a permanentstorage device, such as a flash memory (e.g., flash RAM), othernon-volatile solid-state memory (i.e., EEPROMs, FPGAs, etc.), diskdrive, tape drive, optical drive, floppy disk drive, or some combinationthereof. The memory 250 stores an operating system 255, a monitoringroutine 500, geographic location data (“geo data”) 260, device data 265,and a store of profile data 270. Profile data 270 may include respondentdemographic information, device operation requirements (locationsampling speed, power expectancy, distance to indicate movement ofdevice, etc.) and RFID zone locations (regions where RFID communicationswill be turned on to augment SPS data). It will be appreciated thatthese software components, particularly those that change from time totime, such as respondent demographic information, RFID zone information,etc., may be loaded from another device, such as a personal computer(not shown) or the download server 300 into the memory 250 of themonitoring device 200 via the I/O interface 230.

[0063] Although an exemplary monitoring device 200 has been describedthat generally conforms to a conventional general purpose computingdevice, those of ordinary skill in the art and others will appreciatethat the monitoring device 200 may take on a variety of other forms.Additionally, while some embodiments or the present invention providefor a monitoring device 200 that is operative in an outdoor environment,it will be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art and othersthat the monitoring device 200 is capable of operation a number ofenvironments, including environments heretofore inhospitable to SPSmonitoring. Thus, the invention should not be construed as limited tothe form shown in FIG. 2 with or without the optional components or tothe environments described above.

[0064]FIG. 3 depicts several key components of an exemplary downloadserver 300. Those of ordinary skill in the art and others willappreciate that the download server 300 may include many more componentsthan those shown in FIG. 3. For ease of illustration, many conventionalcomponents likely to be included in an actual download server 300, suchas a keyboard, on-off switch, etc. are not illustrated. It is notnecessary that all of these generally conventional components be shownin order to disclose an enabling embodiment for practicing the presentinvention. The exemplary download server 300 shown in FIG. 3 includes anI/O interface 330 for connecting to other devices (such as a monitoringdevice 200 or post processing server 400). Those of ordinary skill inthe art and others will appreciate that the I/O interface 330 includesthe necessary circuitry for such a connection, and is also constructedfor use with the necessary protocols required by a specific embodimentof the invention.

[0065] The download server 300 also includes a processing unit 310, anoptional display 340 and a memory 350 all interconnected along with theI/O interface 330 via a bus 320. The memory 350 generally comprises RAM,ROM and a permanent mass storage device, such as a disk drive, tapedrive, optical drive, floppy disk drive, flash RAM, other non-volatilesolid-state memory, or combination thereof. The memory 350 stores anoperating system 355, an initialization routine 1200, a download routine1300, a respondent ID database 360, a monitoring device database 365,and monitoring device (“unit”) files 370. It will be appreciated thatthese software components may be loaded from a computer-readable mediuminto memory 350 of the download server 300 using a drive mechanism (notshown) associated with the computer-readable medium, such as a floppy,tape, or DVD/CD-ROM drive or via the I/O interface 330.

[0066] Although an exemplary download server 300 has been described thatgenerally conforms to a conventional general purpose computing device,those of ordinary skill in the art and others will appreciate that thedownload server may take a variety of other forms, including, but notlimited to, database servers configured for information processing.Thus, the download server should not be construed as limited to the formshown in FIG. 3

[0067]FIG. 4 depicts several key components of an exemplary postprocessing server 400. Those of ordinary skill in the art and otherswill appreciate that the post processing server 400 may include manymore components than those shown in FIG. 4. For ease of illustration,many conventional components likely to be included in an actualprocessing server 400, such as a keyboard, on-off switch, etc. are notillustrated. It is not necessary that all of these generallyconventional components be shown in order to disclose an enablingembodiment for practicing the present invention. The exemplary postprocessing server 400 shown in FIG. 4 includes an I/O interface 430 forconnecting to other devices (such as a download server). Those ofordinary skill in the art and others will appreciate that the I/Ointerface 430 includes the necessary circuitry for such a connection,and is also constructed for use with the necessary protocols required bya specific embodiment of the invention.

[0068] The post processing server 400 also includes a processing unit410, an optional display 440 and a memory 450 all interconnected alongwith the I/O interface 430 via a bus 420. The memory 450 generallycomprises a RAM, a ROM, and a permanent mass storage device, such as adisk drive, tape drive, optical drive, floppy disk drive, flash RAM,other non-volatile solid-state memory, or combination thereof. Thememory 450 stores an operating system 455, a post processing routine1400, a respondent geo database 460, a media location database 465, andan augmented DGPS database 470. It will be appreciated that thesesoftware components may be loaded from a computer-readable medium intomemory 450 of the post processing server 400 using a drive mechanism(not shown) associated with the computer-readable medium, such as afloppy, tape or DVD/CD-ROM drive or via the I/O interface 430.

[0069] Although an exemplary post processing server 400 has beendescribed that generally conforms to a conventional general purposecomputing device, those of ordinary skill in the art and others willappreciate that a post processing server 400 may take on a variety ofother forms, including, but not limited to, database servers configuredfor information processing. Thus, the post processing server should notbe construed as limited to the form shown in FIG. 4.

[0070] As illustrated in FIGS. 1, 2, and 11 (described below), themonitoring devices of the display media assessment system 100 are usedto track demographically identified individuals (“respondents”). Thetracking or geo data is used to determine the exposure of therespondents to various media displays.

[0071] A flow chart illustrating an exemplary monitoring routine 500implemented by the monitoring devices 200 is shown in FIG. 5. Prior tostarting monitoring, all necessary variable data, such as a respondent'sdemographic data, RF zone data, profile data, is downloaded to themonitoring device.

[0072] The monitoring routine 500 begins at block 501 and proceeds toblock 503 where the monitoring device is initialized. Next, in block 505the monitoring device's status as having just been turned on is logged.Exemplary information that may be logged at block 505 are the date,time, and location (if available) of the monitoring device 200. Next, inblock 510 the status (expired or not expired) of a watchdog timer islogged. Then in block 512 the watchdog timer is reset. While notnecessary to all embodiments of the present invention, the watchdogtimer is used to restore device function in the case of a crash or othererror. The operation of the watchdog timer is discussed in greaterdetail below in connection with a device analysis subroutine 600 shownin FIG. 6. Processing next proceeds to the device analysis subroutineblock 600, where the monitoring device 200 is analyzed. After the deviceanalysis subroutine 600 returns, processing proceeds to decision block515 where a determination is made whether sufficient time has passed (asspecified in the current profile data 270) to check for the currentlocation of the monitoring device 200. If it was determined that alocation check should not be made, processing cycles back to the deviceanalysis subroutine 600, or in the alternative, may wait until alocation check is desired/required. In any case, after it has beendetermined that a location check should be performed, processingcontinues to a geo data gathering subroutine 1000. An exemplary geo datasubroutine 1000 is illustrated in FIG. 10 and described below. As willbe better understood from the description below, the geo data gatheringsubroutine gathers data about the location of the monitoring device 200.After the geo data gathering subroutine 1000 returns, processingcontinues to decision block 520, where a determination is made whetherthe location of the monitoring device was found during the pass throughthe geo data gathering subroutine 1000. If a location was not found,processing cycles back to the device analysis subroutine 600. If,however, in decision block 520, it was determined that a location wasfound, processing continues to block 525, where the geo data iscompressed. Those of ordinary skill in the art and others willappreciate that compressing data reduces memory requirements and mayincrease the power life of the monitoring device, as less power isneeded to store a smaller amount of information. However, it will alsobe appreciated that compressing the geo data is an optional step thatmay be unnecessary if sufficient memory and power are available. Next,in block 530, the geo data is stored for later retrieval. Processingthen loops back to the reset watchdog timer block 512. The monitoringroutine 500 continues processing until interrupted by either turning offthe monitoring device 200, or the monitoring device 200 loses power.

[0073] In order to ensure the accuracy and reliability of themeasurements at the monitoring device 200, monitoring device analysis(block 600) is included to routinely assess the status of the monitoringdevice 200. Such analysis not only provides greater confidence that thedata produced by the monitoring device 200 is accurate, it also can beused to enhance the monitoring time and accuracy of the monitoringdevice 200 by prolonging the useful life of a power supply bycontrolling the frequency of data gathering which is determined by theselected device profile data 270.

[0074] As noted above, the monitoring routine 500 may include anoptional device analysis subroutine 600. FIG. 6 is an exemplaryillustration of a suitable device analysis subroutine 600. Subroutine600 begins at block 601 and proceeds to a movement analysis subroutineblock 700. A suitable movement analysis subroutine 700 is illustrated inFIG. 7 and described in detail below. Briefly, the movement analysissubroutine 700 determines whether the monitoring device has moved acertain distance from a previous location. Failure of the monitoringdevice to move indicates that a respondent has remained at a particularlocation for an extended period of time. Routine 600 then continues to apower saving subroutine 800. A suitable power saving subroutine 800 isillustrated in FIG. 8 and described in detail below. In general, thepower saving subroutine 800 causes the monitoring device 200 to operatein a more efficient manner, while still taking into account thedesired/anticipated monitoring functions that will be required of themonitoring device 200. Next, in block 610, a determination is madewhether any anomalous device events have been detected. Anomalous deviceevents are any unexpected/out-of-bounds values present in the devicedata. Any detected anomalous device events are then saved in block 615.Next, in decision block 620, a determination is made whether thewatchdog timer has expired. The watchdog timer expires if it is nottimely reset during cycles through the monitoring routine 500 (FIG. 5)described above. Expiration of the watchdog timer is evidence of acatastrophic error in the monitoring device 200. More specifically, asnoted above and shown in FIG. 5, the loop in which the watchdog timer isreset is always cycling. Expiration of the watchdog timer indicates afailure of the monitoring routine 500 to cycle and, hence, theoccurrence of a catastrophic error. In such a scenario, a complete“reboot” of the monitoring device 200 is desirable. In one exemplaryembodiment of the invention, rebooting acts as a power cyclinginstruction to the device such that monitoring routine 500 restarts atblock 501. Note that in monitoring routine 500 at block 510, thewatchdog timer status is logged. Therefore, a reboot instruction (block630) would be logged at block 510. If, however, in decision block 620,it was determined that the watchdog timer has not expired, processingcontinues to block 699, where the device analysis subroutine returns toits calling routine.

[0075] As noted above, the data gathering operation of the monitoringdevice 200, can be enhanced by including a movement analysis subroutine700. An exemplary movement analysis subroutine is illustrated in FIG. 7.As described more fully below, the movement analysis subroutinedetermines whether the monitoring device 200 has moved a sufficientdistance to warrant indicating that the monitoring device and thus aperson using the monitoring device has moved to a new location.Analyzing the movement of the monitoring device makes it possible todetermine dwell time (time spent at a particular location) so as toenhance the assessment of any media displays in the area that may havecaptured a respondent's attention.

[0076] The movement analysis subroutine 700 begins at block 701 andproceeds to block 705, where a measure is made of the distance between areference location and the current location of the monitoring device.The reference location is the last location that the monitoring device200 was at that was sufficiently different from a previous referencelocation to warrant recording a new location. As discussed more fullybelow, the sufficiency determination is based on a threshold that can beset to different levels in accordance with the selected profile data270. It should be noted that when the monitoring device is first turnedon there may not be a reference location. Therefore, the first locationis always a reference location, as well as the current location. Next,in decision block 710, a determination is made whether the distance fromthe reference location is above a threshold. This threshold may be afixed threshold or an adaptive threshold. A fixed threshold distance isspecified in the profile data 270.

[0077] An adaptive threshold depends on factors other than justdistance, such as the respondent's location and/or movement patternsand/or speed. For example, if the monitoring device determines that arespondent is moving at vehicle speeds (e.g., over 10 mph) the thresholddistance may be increased (to indicate vehicle movement). Alternatively,if a respondent is in a pedestrian only area that is rich in mediadisplays, the threshold distance may be lowered, to provide for a moregranular determination of a respondent's exposure to media displays.Whether or not a pedestrian is located in an area rich in media displaysis readily determined by storing information about such locations inmemory and comparing the current location of the monitoring device tosuch locations. Like the fixed threshold distance, the selected profiledata 270 contains movement parameters with which to set an adaptivethreshold.

[0078] Returning to decision block 710, if it was determined that thedistance from the reference location was not above the threshold,processing continues to block 725, where the ending time of the timespent at the reference location is updated with the current time. If,however, in decision block 710 it was determined that the distance wasabove a threshold, processing continues to block 715, where a newlocation and time are recorded as geo data. Additionally, in block 720,the new location is stored as the new reference location. In eithercase, after block 720 or block 725, the movement analysis subroutine 700proceeds to block 799, and returns to the calling routine.

[0079] As noted above, preferably, the device analysis subroutine 600(FIG. 6) also includes a power saving subroutine 800. Power savings isof significant value because power sources (batteries, fuel cells,capacitors and the like) make a contribution to the size and/or weightof a monitoring device 200. Accordingly, a small power source isdesirable yet a small power source usually means less power. Themonitoring device offsets the lower of power resulting from the use ofsmaller power sources by more efficiently determining when to use moreand when to use less power. A power saving subroutine 800 suitable foraccomplishing this result is illustrated in FIG. 8 and described next.

[0080] The power saving subroutine 800 begins at block 801 and proceedsto a battery processing subroutine block 900 (illustrated in FIG. 9 anddescribed below). After the battery processing subroutine 900 ends, thepower savings subroutine 800 proceeds to block 810 and then block 815,where a determination is made whether the current location is inside anRFID (radio frequency identification) zone. An RFID zone is a zonewithin which the monitoring device is within communication range of anRFID device, i.e., a device that transmits RF signals or receives RFsignals. Whether the monitoring device is within an RFID zone can bedetermined by storing the location of such zones in the memory of themonitoring device and periodically comparing the current location of themonitoring device with the stored locations of such zones. Thedetermination is made by periodically checking the device profile data270 for any listed RFID zones.

[0081] If, in decision block 815, it was found that the current locationis inside an RFID zone, the optional RFID functionality of themonitoring device 200 is turned on in block 820. If, however, indecision block 815 it was found that the current location is not insidean RFID zone, the optional RFID functionality of the monitoring device200 is turned off at block 830. If in decision block 815 a determinationcould not be made as to whether the current location is inside oroutside an RFID zone, the status is unknown and the current RFID statusis maintained in block 825. Enabling the RFID functionality only whenthe monitoring device is located in zones that have been designated asRFID zones (in profile data 270) allows the monitoring device 200 to useless power. Less power is used because the RF location component 240 isnot enabled when it is not needed (i.e., when the monitoring device isoutside of RFID zones). Typical RFID zones will be areas with mediadisplays, but with little or no SPS coverage (e.g., subway stations,malls, stadiums, etc.). In any case, after turning on, turning off, ormaintaining the current RFID status, processing continues to block 835,where a determination is made whether SPS signals are blocked.

[0082] Those of ordinary skill in the art and others will appreciatethat while there are a plurality of SPS signal broadcasting devices(satellites, pseudolites, etc.), signals from these devices may beblocked on occasion. This is particularly common underground and withinsubstantial buildings. If SPS signals are blocked, useful location (geo)data cannot be obtained. An adverse effect on the power source of amonitoring device will occur if the monitoring device 200 constantlyattempts to reacquire SPS signals when in areas where such signals areblocked. Therefore, if in decision block 840 it is determined that SPSsignals are blocked, in block 850 the monitoring device is instructed touse a less aggressive SPS signal acquisition profile. Less aggressive,may mean using a lower power signal acquisition method, or trying toacquire SPS signals less often, or trying to acquire SPS signals forshorter periods of time. If in decision block 840 it was found that SPSsignals were not blocked, in block 845 the monitoring device 200 isinstructed to use a more aggressive (e.g., more powerful signalacquisition method or more frequent checks for SPS signals or checks forlonger periods of time per check) SPS signal acquisition profile. Afterblock 845, processing continues to block 899 where the power savingsubroutine 800 returns to its calling routine.

[0083] If the monitoring device 200 was instructed in block 850 to use aless aggressive SPS signal acquisition profile, processing proceeds todecision block 855 where a test determines if a threshold time limit haspassed. The time limit may be established by a predetermined number ofcalls to the power saving subroutine 800, or after a predeterminedperiod of time has passed. If the threshold time limit has passed, thepower saving subroutine 800 proceeds to block 845 where a moreaggressive SPS signal acquisition routine is instituted. In this regard,those of ordinary skill in the art and others will appreciate that a SPSsignal may be temporarily blocked. The monitoring device 200 would beless accurate if required to permanently employ a less aggressive SPSsignal acquisition profile once such a profile is initiated, hence thedecision (block 855) to periodically change the profile back to moreaggressive SPS signal acquisition.

[0084] If in decision block 855 it was determined that the thresholdtime limit has not passed, then in decision block 860 a furtherdetermination is made whether any movement of the monitoring device hasoccurred within a predetermined period of time. This determination ismade by monitoring the output of the trembler 215 (FIG. 2) to determineif the trembler detected movement within the predetermined period oftime. The predetermined period of time is continued in the profile data.An exemplary range is 2-15 minutes. This range is merely meant as anexample and not meant to limit the range of predetermined periods oftime employed by actual embodiments of this invention. The trembler actsas an indicator of whether the monitoring device 200 is actually in use.If, for example, the monitoring device has been placed on a bedsidetable, indicating that the associated respondent is no longer exposed tomedia displays, it is more power efficient to adjust the monitoringdevice so that the monitoring device consumes less energy. Accordingly,if in decision block 860 movement is detected, processing continues toblock 899 where the battery saving subroutine 800 returns to its callingroutine. If, however, in decision block 860 it was determined that therehas been no movement detected by the trembler within a threshold time,processing continues to block 865 where the monitoring device 200 isplaced in a sleep mode until the trembler detects movement. After thetrembler detects movement, processing cycles back to the batteryprocessing subroutine 900.

[0085] As will be readily understood by those skilled in the art andothers, the monitoring device 200 is used by respondents over extendedperiods of time. Accordingly, it is desirable to continually assesswhether there is sufficient battery (fuel cell, capacitor, etc.) powerto keep the monitoring device 200 in operation for the anticipatedduration of the study. Such battery assessment can be used to controlpower usage and, thus, extend the operation time of the monitoringdevice. FIG. 9 is an exemplary illustration of a suitable batteryprocessing subroutine 900 directed to accomplishing this result.

[0086] The battery processing subroutine 900 begins at block 901 andproceeds to block 905 where the device checks its anticipated batteryusage requirements. Next in block 910, the monitoring device 200determines available battery power. After which, in decision block 915 adetermination is made whether a different device profile is needed. Thisdetermination compares both the current battery power availability, theanticipated battery usage requirements, and the indicated profile forthe current study of the monitoring device 200. For example if thecurrent level of battery power availability is below the anticipatedusage requirements, a lower power profile may be substituted for thecurrent profile. Conversely, a higher power profile may be substitutedif a available battery power is greater than expected. For example, ifthe current study of the monitoring device is monitoring an urban areafor a two-week period, the determination of whether a different deviceprofile is needed will depend on current battery power availability andthe anticipated battery usage requirements of the monitoring device 200and whether it will be able to adequately provide location informationwithin an urban environment for the remainder of its monitoring period.

[0087] If in decision block 915 it was determined that a differentdevice profile is not required, the battery processing subroutine 900proceeds to block 999 where it returns to its calling routine. Ifhowever, it was determined in decision bock 915 that a different deviceprofile was needed, in block 920 a better device profile is determined.For example, if the thresholds that have been set for the movementanalysis subroutine 700 have resulted in repeated location checks thatdo not indicate that a monitoring device has moved from a referencedlocation, a more power efficient profile that causes the monitoringdevice to make less frequent location checks is chosen. Alternatively,if the movement analysis subroutine 700 finds that the thresholddistance is always exceeded, a profile that increases the thresholddistance to try and capture a “flighty” respondent is chosen. Next, inblock 925, the profile of monitoring device 200 is changed andprocessing proceeds to block 999 where subroutine 900 returns to itscalling routine.

[0088] Although an extensive analysis of the operation of the monitoringdevice 200 is desirable, such an analysis is not essential toembodiments of the invention. The main purpose is to accurately trackrespondents. As generally noted above, the monitoring device 200achieves this result by continuously determining a respondent'slocation, i.e., the location of a person carrying or in some other wayassociated with a monitoring device, and periodically storing theresults of the determination. Monitoring device location is determinedusing either just SPS or SPS in combination with RF. RF location mayinclude an RF interrogator mounted in the monitoring device 200 forinterrogating an RF transponder and/or an RF transmitter fortransmitting identification data for receipt by RF receivers when amonitoring device is sufficiently close to a receiver associated with amedia display. Thus, depending on implementation, RF locationdetermination can be considered somewhat equivalent to SPS satellitelocation determination, particularly if the monitoring device 200receives information from prepositioned RF transponders in a mannersimilar to the way the monitoring device receives information fromsatellites. In this regard, those of ordinary skill in the art andothers will appreciate that there are technical differences between SPSsatellites, pseudolites (RF devices that, while not satellites,broadcast SPS satellite-type information) and RF transponders. Becauseof the similarity and in order to avoid unnecessary duplication, forpurposes of the location getting subroutine 1000, all received locationsignals are referred to as satellite signals. This in no way is meant tolimit the present invention to only utilizing satellites for determininglocation.

[0089] The location getting subroutine 1000 (FIG. 10) begins at block1001 and proceeds to block 1005 where it is determined if satellites arein view, i.e., if the monitoring device is receiving satellite signals.Then, in block 1010, the satellites whose signals are being received areidentified. Next, in decision block 1015, a determination is madewhether there are a sufficient number of satellites to obtain alocation. One of ordinary skill in the art and others will appreciatethat different implementations of the present invention will require adifferent number of satellites with which to provide suitably accuratelocation information. In general, conventional SPS engines requirereceiving signals from four or more satellites if an accurate locationis to be determined. However, less than four satellite signals may beused if less accuracy is acceptable, or if there are additional knownpieces of information (e.g., altitude, latitude or longitude). Theseadditional pieces of information could come from other directional units235 of a monitoring device 200. RFID systems and pseudolite systems mayrely on less than three signals and still provide suitably accuratelocation information. One RFID and pseudolite signal source may besufficient if elevation information is not required. Similarly, a singlesatellite signal may be sufficient if combined with known data, such asGIS information obtained from the GIS database 125.

[0090] If in decision block 1015 it was determined that signals fromenough satellites (or other devices) are being received, in block 1020the current location of the monitoring device 200 is computed andstored. Next, in block 1025 information identifying the satellites thatwere used to determine the current location are stored. Additionally, inblock 1030, the current date and time are stored. Optionally, in block1035 other relevant data, such as satellite signal level, individualpseudo-ranges of satellites (raw signal), augmentation data (e.g. WAASor Wide Area Augmentation System data) and carrier phase (phase of radiowave from satellite) is determined, i.e., detected. In block 1040, theother relevant data is stored. Finally, in block 1099, the currentlocation is returned to the calling routine. If, however, in decisionblock 1015, it was determined that not enough satellite signals wereavailable, processing proceeds to block 1045 where informationidentifying the satellites that signals were received from are stored.Then in block 1050, the date and time are stored. As an insufficientnumber of satellite signals were available to calculate a location,processing continues to block 1098 where an indication that no locationwas found is returned to the calling routine. Regardless of which pathis followed,after the location or no location result is returned, thelocation getting subroutine 1000 returns to the calling routine.

[0091] The RF location component 240 of the present invention may beoperative in a number of different manners. In one exemplary embodiment,the RF location component 240 “chirps” out a low power signal with anidentification that is then identified by one or more receiving RFdevices at or near media displays. The strength of the signal may bemonitored by the receiving RF device, such that only a signal ofsufficient strength indicates an exposure to the media display. In analternate embodiment, media displays have RF devices that broadcast alow power chirp that identifies of their location, such that themonitoring device 200 is able to record locations even when a SPS signalis not present. Similarly, the strength of the broadcast is monitored bythe monitoring device 200, such that only a signal of sufficientstrength indicates presence at a particular location (or is of such lowpower that any reception indicates presence at a particular location).In still another embodiment, the media displays have RF devices thatbroadcast a chirp or beacon of an identifier, such that the monitoringdevice 200 is then able to record identifiers of specific mediadisplays. Again, the strength of the broadcast is monitored by themonitoring device 200, such that only a signal of sufficient strengthindicates presence at a particular location (or is of such low powerthat any reception indicates presence at a particular location).

[0092] The operation of the display media assessment system 100 (FIG. 1)of the present invention will be better understood by reference to FIG.11, which illustrates an exemplary sequence of interactions betweendevices of the system 100. As noted above, the display media assessmentsystem 100 illustrated in FIG. 1 includes a monitoring device 200, adownload server 300 and a post processing server 400.

[0093] Turning to FIG. 11, a media display assessment sequence isinitiated when a monitoring device 200 receives initializationinformation 1105 from a download server 300 or other suitable device. Asnoted above, the initialization information or data may includerespondent demographic data, RF zone data, profile data, etc. After themonitoring device 200 has been initialized, monitoring can begin.Monitoring may commence immediately or after a period of time. In anycase, after the monitoring device is initialized, i.e., ready to gathergeo data, the monitoring device analyzes itself 1110 and then proceedsto gather geo data 1115. Geo data gathering continues until the geogathering is interrupted due to power source wearing out or themonitoring device being instructed to stop gathering geo data (e.g.,because an OFF key is enabled). After geo data gathering is complete, orat periodic intervals, gathered geo data is downloaded from themonitoring device 200 to a download server 300. More specifically whenthe monitoring device 200 is ready to download, device data 1120 isfirst transferred from the monitoring device 200 to the download server300. The device data includes data gathered by the monitoring device 200about itself (e.g., device diagnostic data, power consumption data,etc.). The download server 300 adds 1125 the download device data to anypreviously received device data. For example, if multiple monitoringdevices 200 store device data, the download server 300 would gather allthis information together. After the device data 1120 has beendownloaded to the server, the monitoring device 200 downloads geo data1130 to the download server 300. The downloaded geo data is accumulated1135. Next, the monitoring device 200 and the download server 300 mayengage in a bidirectional exchange of diagnostic data 1140, i.e., themonitoring device receives and responds to specific diagnostic requestsfrom the download server 300. The download server 300 then analyzes thediagnostic data 1145.

[0094] Preferably, data from multiple monitoring devices 200 isdownloaded to the download server 300 in the manner described above.After downloading the device and geo data 1150 are downloaded from thedownload server 300 to the post processing server 400, the postprocessing server 400 performs a plurality of functions. Initially thepost processing server grooms 1155 the geo data to improve its accuracy.Next, the geo data is aggregated 1160 into queryable results. Theaggregated geo data is further processed 1165 using information derivedfrom the GIS database 125. Locations in the processed geo data are thenmatched 1170 to known locations of publicly viewable media displays.Next, the post processing server generates in tabulation (“in-tab”) andout of tabulation (“out-of-tab”) statistics 1180 which are used todetermine what information is accurate and should be preserved. In-tabdata is data that is said to have come from an accurate source (e.g., awell-functioning monitoring device 200 and a cooperating respondent).Out-of-tab data is said to be unusable for some reason (such as from amalfunctioning monitoring device 200, corrupted data, and/or anuncooperative respondent). The geo data and matched locations are thenfixed 1185 to cover any out-of-tab data that has been removed. The fixeddata is used to determine reach and frequency 1190 statistics for themedia displays. The reach and frequency statistics are then used toprovide rankings and gross impressions 1195 for the media displays.

[0095] As will be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art andothers, FIG. 11 illustrates one exemplary set of interactions betweenthe devices of system 100. It will also be appreciated by those ofordinary skill in the art and others that additional interactions andselections may be employed by actual embodiments of the invention.Additionally, it will be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in theart and others that the actions illustrated in FIG. 11 may be performedin other orders, or may be combined. For example, geo data may bedownloaded before device data to the download server 300. Thus, FIG. 11and the foregoing description should be taken as illustrative, notlimiting.

[0096] As illustrated in FIGS. 1, 3 and 11, the exemplary embodiment ofthe display media assessment system 100 described herein includes adownload server 300 that is used to retrieve information from monitoringdevices 200. Additionally, the download server is operative toinitialize monitoring devices 200. A flowchart illustrating an exemplarydevice initialization routine 1200 and a data download routine 1300formed in accordance with the present invention are shown in FIGS. 12and 13, respectively, and described next.

[0097] The monitoring device initialization routine 1200 begins at block1201 and proceeds to decision block 1205 where a determination is madewhether the device to be initialized is a new device, or one that hasbeen used previously. If it was found in decision block 1205 that a newmonitoring device 200 is to be initialized, processing continues toblock 1210 where new firmware is downloaded to the monitoring device200. If however in decision block 1205 it was determined that apreviously initialized monitoring device 200 is to be initialized,processing continues to block 1220 where any device and/or geo datastored in memory is cleared. Regardless of whether a new device or apreviously initialized monitoring device 200 is being initialized,processing continues to block 1215 where the monitoring device's 200operation is tested, i.e., a series of operational tests not part of thepresent invention are performed. Next, in decision block 1225, if anyerrors were detected when testing the operation of the monitoring device200, processing continues to block 1235 where the monitoring device 200is flagged as defective, after which processing ends at block 1299. Ifhowever in decision block 1225 it was determined that no errors weredetected during the operational tests in decision block 1230, adetermination is made whether the power supply is sufficient for themonitoring device 200. The sufficiency decision in decision block 1230may be affected by known and/or projected parameters of how much power amonitoring device 200 may need in an upcoming study (as stored inprofile data 270). For example, measurements of the voltage andtemperature of a battery power source, can be used to determine anexpected level of performance given known average power consumption ofmonitoring device 200. Alternatively, a fixed voltage level at aparticular temperature may be used as a threshold to determinesufficiency of a power supply, for example, 2.8 volts at 70 degreesFahrenheit (room temperature). Voltage below this level would beregarded as indicating insufficient power. If in decision block 1230 itwas determined that the power supply is sufficient, processing continuesto block 1240 where the device is flagged as having enough power. Next,in block 1245, study specific data is added to the profile data 270 ofthe monitoring device 200. In one exemplary embodiment of the presentinvention, study specific data includes designated zones where RFIDmeasurements are to be taken. Other types of study specific data mayinclude listings of anticipated satellites that should be available,device profiles for determining a location in a metropolitan area,frequency of location inquiries, duration of study, anticipation of timespent indoors or outdoors, and/or end date and time of study. Next, inblock 1299, the initialization routine 1200 ends. If in decision block1230 it was determined that the power supply was insufficient, then inblock 1250 the monitoring device 200 is flagged as not having enoughpower and processing again ends at block 1299.

[0098] Besides initializing the monitoring device 200, as shown in FIG.11, the download server also retrieves information from the monitoringdevice 200 after a study. This retrieval may be accomplished by anyconventional way computing devices communicate with one another(wireless, wire connected, networked, telephone, etc.).

[0099] An exemplary download routine 1300 suitable for use by thedownload server 300 is illustrated in FIG. 13. FIG. 13 begins at block1301 and continues to block 1305 where geo data is retrieved from themonitoring device 200. Next, in block 1310 device status data isretrieved from the monitoring device 200. Processing then continues toblock 1315 where supplemental device diagnostics are performed. As notedabove with regard to FIG. 11, supplemental device diagnostics includecommunication with the monitoring device 200 to determine the currentdiagnostic status of the monitoring device. In decision block 1320 adetermination is made whether any of the received geo data, devicestatus data or the results of the supplemental device diagnosticsresulted in anomalous data, data errors or an insufficiency of data. Ifso, the error or condition is flagged in block 1325 and the anomalousdata errors or indication of insufficiency of data is saved to adesignated location for further processing. After the anomalous data ordata errors have been flagged, processing ends at block 1399. If indecision block 1320 no data errors or insufficiencies were foundprocessing cycles to block 1399 and ends.

[0100] As illustrated in FIGS. 1, 4 and 11, the exemplary embodiment ofthe media display assessment system 100 described herein includes a postprocessing server 400 that is used to process and assess the dataretrieved from monitoring devices 200 by download servers 300. Aflowchart illustrating an exemplary post processing routine 1400suitable for implementation by the post processing server 400 is shownin FIG. 14. The post processing routine 1400 begins at block 1401 andproceeds to block 1405 where data is retrieved and saved from anydownload servers storing downloaded information obtained from themonitoring devices 200. After the data has been saved, then processingcontinues to subroutine block 1500 where the geo data is groomed. Anexemplary routine for grooming geo data is illustrated in FIG. 15 anddescribed in detail below. After the geo data has been groomed,processing continues to block 1410 where geo data from multiplemonitoring devices 200 is aggregated. In one exemplary embodiment, thisaggregation entails combining geo data from multiple respondents in thesame vicinity to improve knowledge about that area and satellitecoverage.

[0101] Next, in block 1415, the geo data is further processed withinformation obtained from the GIS database 125. The GIS processing maybe iterative in that multiple passes may further improve the accuracy ofthe geo data. Accordingly in decision block 1420 a determination is madewhether the geo data can be further improved with GIS and if so,processing returns back to block 1415. Processing with informationobtained from the GIS database includes eliminating all possibleambiguous SPS location solutions that are not on roads/sidewalks atsurface altitude. For example, if the wavefront from a SPS satelliteintersects a road at only one location, processing using GIS databaseinformation determines that the monitoring device 200 is at thatlocation on the road indicated by the information gathered from the GISdatabase 125. Ambiguous SPS location solutions may further be reducedusing data regarding the speed required to move from a previous knownlocation to a new location.

[0102] When the geo data has been sufficiently optimized using the GISdatabase 125, processing continues to subroutine block 1600 wherelocations of publicly viewable display media are matched to locationswhere the monitoring devices 200 have been. A suitable location matchingsubroutine 1600 is illustrated in FIG. 16 and described in detail below.

[0103] Those of ordinary skill in the art and others will appreciatethat while the location matching subroutine 1600 described belowdiscusses matching monitoring devices locations to the locations ofpublicly viewable media displays, the location matching subroutine 1600may also be used to match other types of locations. For example, thelocation matching subroutine 1600 may be used to match monitoring devicelocations to potential media display locations as well as other types oflocations.

[0104] Next, in block 1425 the content of matched media displays isidentified. In one exemplary embodiment, media content identificationinvolves identifying which media displays were matched and then lookingup what media content was displayed at the times the monitoring deviceand the display locations matched. Processing continues then to block1430 where supplemental measures are added to the data being processedsupplemental measures include, but are not limited to, size, angle,lighting, time of day, blocking objects, clutter, and position. Next, indecision block 1435 a determination is made whether the location matchesshould be refined given the additional information received with regardto existing location matches and the supplemental measures. Supplementalmeasures may change the threshold for exposure to media displays. Forexample, an unlighted billboard at night would have a much lowerthreshold of exposure than the same billboard during the daytime.Similarly, if a building partially blocks a media display from aparticular angle, a supplemental measure noting this effect would lowerthe threshold of exposure at certain locations. If the addedsupplemental measures information refines the location matches,processing cycles back to subroutine 1600. If on the other hand indecision block 1435 a determination is made that location matches do notneed to be refined, processing continues to a tabulation (“tab”)analysis subroutine 1700. As noted above, tab analysis is thedetermination of which data should remain as part of an accurateassessment of the exposure and reach and frequency of media displays. Asuitable tab analysis subroutine 1700 is illustrated in FIG. 17 anddescribed in detail below. Processing then continues to a ratingssubroutine. Four illustrative ratings subroutines 1800, 1900, 2000 and2001 are illustrated in FIGS. 18, 19, 20 and 21, respectively, anddescribed in detail below. After the ratings subroutines are completedthe post processing routine 1400 ends at block 1499.

[0105] As noted above, preferably, the geo data retrieved frommonitoring devices 200 is refined in grooming subroutine 1500, anexample of which is illustrated in FIG. 15. More specifically, those ofordinary skill in the art and others will appreciate that geo datagrooming may be accomplished in many ways. Subroutine 1500 merelyillustrates an exemplary series of steps that form one type of geo datagrooming. Subroutine 1500 begins at block 1501 and proceeds to block1505 where DGPS data is added (possibly from the augmented DGPS database470) to improve (augment) the geo data received from the monitoringdevices. Next, in block 1510 any partial geo data (e.g., SPS dataobtained using less than four satellites) is analyzed to see whether itfills any potential holes in routes determined from the augmented geodata. Next in block 1515, confidence ratings are computed for individualgeo data points. Those of ordinary skill in the art and others willappreciate that different confidence levels may be ascribed to geo datapoints depending on the strength of signals and/or length of time amonitoring device 200 was exposed to a satellite signal. The confidencelevels are used to further refine the geo data and intermediate pointswhere geo data may not have been recorded. Next in block 1520 the geodata is further augmented by ascribing geo data locations from knowndata. For example, if a geo data location is found at the entrance of atunnel and at the exit from a tunnel over a relatively short period oftime, predicted points within a tunnel (or urban canyon) can be ascribedto the monitoring device 200 to establish respondent exposure to a mediadisplay located in the tunnel. In block 1525, any anomalous geo data issaved for potential further processing. Finally, in block 1599,subroutine 1500 returns to its calling routine.

[0106] An exemplary location matching subroutine 1600 suitable for useby the post processing server 400 is illustrated in FIG. 16 anddescribed next. In order to determine whether a respondent was exposed(or at least had the opportunity to be exposed) to a media display, itis necessary to determine if the respondent was in the vicinity of themedia display. Accordingly, location matching subroutine 1600 comparesrespondent locations determined by geo data to media display locations.Location matching begins at block 1601 and proceeds to looping block1605 where for all location zones (e.g., zones where someone might beexposed to a media display), are tested for matching. In block 1610 thegeo data is examined to detect all routes that cross the location zoneat different times from a direction (or directions) of interest. As therespondent may be moving at different speeds, at a given distance and agiven speed there would have not been enough time for an exposure at aparticular distance. Accordingly, in one embodiment of the invention arespondent has been exposed to a small media display when walking withinfifty feet of the display, but not exposed when driving by the mediadisplay at 35 mph. This may be determined by examining the geo data andthe location of the media display in question Next, redundant zoneentries are eliminated (block 1615). The redundant zone entries are onlyeliminated if they indicate repeated entry and exit from the zone, whichwould indicate a location respondent who is close to a zone boundary.The redundant entries elimination performed by block 1615 is to addhysteresis to counter redundant zone crossings introduced by arespondent's movement. Then in block 1620, additional information suchas the number of zone crossings and the speed of these crossings issaved. At looping block 1625, processing loops back to 1605 unless alllocation zones have been processed, in which case the location matchingsubroutine 1600 returns to its calling routine at block 1699.

[0107] Not all information gathered by a monitoring device 200 is alwaysgoing to be useful information. Non-useful information should be removedfrom the study if it is determined that it was inaccurately obtained.The determination of what information is non-useful is known astabulation or tab analysis.

[0108] An exemplary tab analysis subroutine 1700 is illustrated in FIG.17. The tab analysis subroutine 1700 begins at block 1701 and proceedsto looping block 1705 where for each monitoring device's data (or atleast each study of monitoring if more than one person used the samemonitoring device) the following is performed. In decision block 1710, adetermination is made whether there were any device failures. Thisinformation is included in the stored anomalous data. Device failure maybe indicated by an indication that a monitoring device was producingerratic results, or that watchdog timer events were logged. Any datafrom monitoring devices having a failure indication is removed from theaggregated data sample in block 1725. Next, the aggregated data isexpanded to cover the removed data in block 1730. Those of ordinaryskill in the art and others will appreciate that the aggregated data maynot have to be expanded in all circumstances.

[0109] If in decision block 1710 it was determined that there were nodevice failures, processing continues to decision block 1715 where adetermination is made whether an uncooperative person used the device.Those of ordinary skill in the art and others will appreciate that if arespondent takes a monitoring device 200 and simply leaves it on anightstand during the study period any geo data gathered would not beindicative of the respondent's exposure to publicly viewable mediadisplays (except in the unlikely event that the person did not leave thevicinity of their nightstand for the full study period). Suchrespondents are designated uncooperative. Other examples will also beapparent to those of ordinary skill in the art and others, such asrespondents never turning on a device. Accordingly, if in decision block1715 it was determined that an uncooperative respondent used the device,processing continues to block 1720 where the uncooperative person's datais saved. Storing this data allows the uncooperative respondent to beincluded in the results of the study should it later be determined thatthe respondent actually was cooperative and potentially for otherreasons as well. Processing then would continue to block 1725 andproceed as before. If however in decision block 1715 it was determinedthat a cooperative person (e.g., someone who turned on the device andcarried it during a study) used the device, then processing continues tolooping block 1735. Processing also proceeds to looping block 1735 afterblock 1730. At looping block 1735 processing loops back to looping block1705 unless all devices data have been iterated through, in which caseprocessing continues to block 1799 where subroutine 1700 returns to itscalling routine.

[0110] As noted above, a number of different rating subroutines may beemployed by embodiments of the present invention. Those of ordinaryskill in the art and others will appreciate that the geo data that isobtainable from the monitoring devices 200 may have applications otherthan strictly determining the exposure, reach and frequency of publiclyviewable media displays.

[0111] In a first exemplary rating subroutine 1800 publicly viewablemedia displays are assessed with regard to exposure, reach andfrequency. Subroutine 1800 begins at block 1801 and proceeds to reachand frequency processing subroutine 2200. An exemplary reach andfrequency processing subroutine 2200 is illustrated in FIG. 22 anddescribed below. Next, processing continues to block 1810 where grossrating points (“GRPs”) are also calculated based on the geo data. Nextin block 1815 daily effective circulation ratings are determined basedon the geo data The ratings are then returned to the calling routine inblock 1899.

[0112]FIG. 19 illustrates an exemplary ratings subroutine 1900 forrating respondent recall and purchases. Subroutine 1900 begins at block1901 and proceeds to block 1905 where respondents of interest areselected. These respondents of interest may be individuals selected inan arbitrary or random manner, individuals who are part of a particulardemographic group or groups, or who have been exposed to particularmedia displays. Next, in block 1910 a survey of respondents' recall ofmedia displays is processed to determine which media displays therespondents recall. Then, in block 1915 a survey of respondents'purchasing behavior is processed. Next, in block 1920 these processsurvey results are tabulated to form recall and purchase ratings withregard to matched publicly viewable media displays. Routine 1900 thenreturns at block 1999 to its calling routine with the recall andpurchase ratings.

[0113] The previous discussions and ratings described above relate toexisting media displays. In contrast, FIG. 20 illustrates an exemplarymedia display planning subroutine 2000 for rating locations forpotential media displays. Media planning subroutine 2000 begins at block2001 and proceeds to block 2005 where target reach, frequency, andbudget information is selected. Next in block 2010 a set of locationsfor potential media displays is selected. Then a reach and frequencysubroutine 2200 that determines the reach and frequency of eachpotential media display location is executed. An exemplary reach andfrequency subroutine is illustrated in FIG. 22 and described below.After reach and frequency for each of the potential media displaylocations has been determined, in block 2015, the reach and frequency ofeach location is compared to the target reach and frequency previouslyselected. Next, in block 2020 the locations' ratings are determinedbased on how closely they match the target reach and frequency. Mediaplanning rating subroutine 2000 then ends at block 2099 returning theoptimum location or locations and ratings of those locations to thecalling routine.

[0114]FIG. 21 illustrates an exemplary non-media planning (e.g., roadtraffic analyses, real estate development, service placements, etc.)subroutine 2100. The illustrated non-media planning subroutine 2100begins at block 2101 and proceeds to block 2105 where desired traffic(either vehicle or pedestrian) characteristics are selected. Next, inlooping block 2110 for all known locations and routes the following isperformed. A current location and route is compared to the desiredtraffic characteristics to form a rating in block 2115. Next in loopingblock 2120 processing loops back to 2110 unless all known locations androutes have already been iterated through in which case processingproceeds to block 2125. In block 2125, a determination is made of theoptimally rated location(s) and/or route(s) in view of the desiredtraffic characteristics. Non-media planning rating subroutine 2100 thenends at block 2199 returning all optimal location(s) and/or route(s).

[0115]FIG. 22 illustrates an exemplary reach and frequency determinationsubroutine 2200. The illustrated reach/frequency determinationsubroutine 2200 begins at block 2201 and proceeds to outer looping block2205 where for all demographics the following is performed. First, atinner looping block 2210 for all locations the following is performed.At block 2215, a determination is made of which respondents were exposedto a zone of interest (reach). Next in block 2220, a determination ismade of the average number of times a respondent is exposed to a zone ofinterest (frequency). Processing then continues to the inner loopingblock 2225 which returns to block 2210 unless all location zones havebeen iterated through in which case processing continues to demographiclooping block 2230 which loops back to looping block 2205. If alldemographics have been looped through, then processing continues toblock 2299 where the reach and frequency determination subroutine 2200returns to its calling routine.

[0116] While the term demographics has been used to describe differenttypes of respondents, it will be appreciated by those of ordinary skillin the art and others that sociographic and psychographiccategorizations may also be used with the present invention.Accordingly, instead of categorizing respondents based on age, gender,economic level and educational background, it may be possible tocategorize respondents in other categories (e.g., early adopter, yuppie,baby boomer, etc.). Thus, demographics should be understood with regardto the present invention to also include sociographic and psychographiccategorizations.

[0117] While the preferred embodiment of the invention has beenillustrated and described, it will be appreciated that various changescan be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of theinvention.

The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive property orprivilege is claimed are defined as follows:
 1. A computer implementedmethod of determining media display effectiveness, the methodcomprising: aggregating geo data received from a plurality of datasources, at least a portion of said geo data derived from a satellitepositioning system (“SPS”), said geo data representing the movement ofrespondents along paths of travel; matching the locations of mediadisplays to positions on said paths of travel represented by said geodata; and rating the effectiveness of said media displays utilizing saidmatches between said media display locations and said positions on saidpaths of travel represented by said geo data.
 2. The method of claim 1,further comprising: analyzing said geo data to determine if said geodata is erroneous; and removing any erroneous data from said geo dataprior to matching the locations of media displays to positions on saidpaths of travel represented by said geo data.
 3. The method of claim 1,wherein rating the effectiveness of said media displays comprisesdetermining the reach and frequency of said media displays.
 4. Themethod of claim 1, further comprising augmenting said geo data withexternal data to enhance accuracy.
 5. The method of claim 4 wherein saidexternal data is geographic information system (“GIS”) data.
 6. Themethod of claim 1 further comprising grooming said geo data to enhanceaccuracy.
 7. The method of claim 1 wherein said geo data is grouped inaccordance with the demographics of said respondents.
 8. The method ofclaim 1 wherein said plurality of data sources are monitoring devices.9. The method of claim 8 further comprising initializing said monitoringdevices with study specific data.
 10. The method of claim 9, whereinsaid study specific data includes RF zones.
 11. The method of claim 8,wherein said monitoring device locations include locations located alongcalculated lines extending between geo data locations.
 12. Acomputer-readable medium, containing computer-executable instructionsfor performing the method of any of claims 1-11.
 13. A computing system,including a processor and a memory, operative to perform the method ofany of claims 1-11.
 14. A computer implemented method of determiningmedia display effectiveness, the method comprising: obtaining geo dataspecifying a plurality of locations traversed by a monitoring device andan associated respondent, at least a portion of said geo data derivedfrom a satellite positioning system (“SPS”); comparing said monitoringdevice locations with a plurality of media display locations; anddetermining if said monitoring device was exposed to a media displaybased on whether said monitoring device locations and said media displaylocations are sufficiently close enough to conclude that the locationsmatch.
 15. The method of claim 14, wherein said geo data is obtainedfrom said monitoring device.
 16. The method of claim 14, wherein saidgeo data obtained from said monitoring device is downloaded to adownload server.
 17. The method of claim 14, further comprisingobtaining device data.
 18. The method of claim 17, wherein said devicedata is obtained from said monitoring device.
 19. The method of claim17, wherein device data obtained from said monitoring device isdownloaded to a download server.
 20. The method of claim 14, whereinsufficiently close is based on determining if said monitoring devicetraversed within a threshold distance of a media display location. 21.The method of claim 14, wherein said monitoring device locations includelocations located along calculated lines extending between geo datalocations.
 22. The method of claim 21, wherein calculated lines arestraight lines.
 23. The method of claim 21, wherein said calculatedlines are curved lines.
 24. The method of claim 14, wherein said geodata includes velocity data describing the rate of movement of saidmonitoring device.
 25. The method of claim 14, further comprisinggrooming said geo data.
 26. The method of claim 25, wherein groomingsaid geo data comprises adding DGPS data to said geo data.
 27. Themethod of claim 25, wherein grooming said geo data comprises mergingpartial geo data locations with data representing known locations. 28.The method of claim 25, wherein grooming said geo data comprisesdetermining additional geo data locations from data representing knownlocations.
 29. The method of claim 14, further comprising identifyingand storing anomalous geo data.
 30. The method of claim 14, furthercomprising determining confidence ratings for said monitoring devicelocations.
 31. The method of claim 14, further comprising enhancing theaccuracy of said geo data using Geographic Information System (“GIS”)data to enhance said geo data.
 32. The method of claim 14, furthercomprising analyzing said geo data to identify erroneous (“out-of-tab”)data.
 33. The method of claim 32, further comprising storing anyidentified out-of-tab geo data in an out-of-tab data location in memory.34. The method of claim 32, wherein any identified out-of-tab geo datais removed from said geo data.
 35. The method of claim 14, furthercomprising determining an exposure value for each of said media displaysthat are sufficiently close enough to conclude that the locations match.36. The method of claim 35, further comprising determining a reach valuefor each of said media displays that are sufficiently close enough toconclude that the locations match.
 37. The method of claim 35, furthercomprising determining a frequency value for each of said media displaysthat are sufficiently close enough to conclude that the locations match.38. The method of claim 35, further comprising entering demographic datainto said monitoring device: determining reach and frequency values foreach of said media displays; and categorizing said reach and frequencyvalues in accordance with the demographics entered into said monitoringdevice.
 39. The method of claim 35, further comprising determiningmonitoring device reach and frequency values for each of said mediadisplays; and calculating Gross Rating Points (“GRPs”) for each of saidmedia displays based on said geo data.
 40. The method of claim 35,further comprising determining daily effective circulation ratings fromsaid geo data.
 41. The method of claim 14, wherein said monitoringdevice is carried by a respondent and further comprising processing asurvey of said respondent's recall of media displays, said surveycorresponding to said geo data.
 42. The method of claim 14, wherein saidmonitoring device is carried by a respondent and further comprisingprocessing a survey of said respondent's purchase behavior, said surveycorresponding to said geo data.
 43. The method of claim 14 wherein saidmonitoring device is carried by a respondent and further comprising:processing a survey of said respondent's recall of media displays, saidsurvey corresponding to said geo data; processing a survey of saidrespondent's purchase behavior, said survey corresponding to said geodata; and tabulating said survey results to form recall and purchaseratings for each of said media displays.
 44. A computer-readable medium,containing computer-executable instructions for performing the method ofany of claims 14-43.
 45. A computing apparatus, having a processor and amemory, and operative to perform the method of any of claims 14-43. 46.A computer implemented method of determining optimized placement ofmedia displays, the method comprising: obtaining geo data specifying aplurality of locations traversed by a monitoring device in a geographicregion, at least a portion of said geo data derived from a satellitepositioning system (“SPS”); selecting a target level of media displayexposure and a budget; determining potential locations within saidgeographic region with a price within said budget; matching saidpotential locations to geo data locations; determining for saidpotential location whether said monitoring device would have beenexposed to a potential media display at each of said potentiallocations; and determining an optimized placement of a media displaybased on a level of exposure that said media display would have had at apotential location.
 47. The method of claim 46, further comprisingdetermining a reach value for each of said potential locations.
 48. Themethod of claim 46, further comprising determining a frequency value foreach of said potential locations.
 49. The method of claim 46, furthercomprising: determining reach and frequency values for each of saidpotential locations; and calculating Gross Rating Points (“GRPs”) foreach of said potential locations based on said geo data.
 50. The methodof claim 46, further comprising determining daily effective circulationratings from said geo data.
 51. A computer-readable medium, containingcomputer-executable instructions for performing the method of any ofclaims 46-50.
 52. A computing apparatus, having a processor and amemory, and operative to perform the method of any of claims 46-50. 53.A computer implemented method of location usage planning, comprising;obtaining geo data specifying a plurality of locations traversed by aplurality of monitoring devices within a geographic region, at least aportion of said geo data derived from a satellite positioning system(“SPS”); selecting desired traffic characteristics and demographics fora desired location; establishing traffic characteristics anddemographics for all geo data locations; comparing said establishedtraffic characteristics and demographics to said desired trafficcharacteristics; and determining at least one geo data location havingtraffic characteristics that optimally match said desiredcharacteristics.
 54. The method of claim 53 wherein said geo dataincludes line segments between geo data locations.
 55. Acomputer-readable medium, containing computer-executable instructionsfor performing the method of any of claims 53-54.
 56. A computingapparatus, having a processor and a memory, and operative to perform themethod of any of claims 53-54.
 57. A monitoring device for tracking arespondent's location comprising: (a) a satellite positioning system(“SPS”) component for periodically determining the position of themonitoring device; (b) a motion sensing component for indicating a timethe monitoring device was last moved; and (c) a processing systemcoupled to said motion sensing component for controlling the powerconsumed by the monitoring device based on whether said time since themonitoring device last moved is within a threshold time.
 58. The deviceof claim 57, wherein said motion sensing component is a trembler.